1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to computer communication systems and more particularly to a status and time-based delivery service for instant messengers.
2. Description of the Related Art
The widespread use of PCs and mobile computing devices in various segments of society has resulted in a reliance on computer systems both at work and at home, such as for telecommuting, news, stock market information and trading, banking, shopping, shipping, communication in the form of hypertext transfer protocol (http) and e-mail, as well as other services. Many of these functions take advantage of the communication abilities offered by the Internet. E-mail, which allows a user to transmit a message to another user, is one of the more popular uses of the Internet, and its use continues to increase.
Another application that continues to increase in popularity is instant messaging (IM). IM systems allow two or more users on computer systems such as PCs or mobile computing devices to exchange messages in real-time (or near real-time). IM systems allow users to maintain a list of other users, called a buddy or contact list, with whom they wish to interact. Using the IM system, a user can send an instant message to any person on their contact list as long as that person is on-line. IM systems typically provide current status information about users on the contact list, telling the contact list owner whether each user on the list is on-line or off-line so that they will know with whom they may interact. This feature is often called presence management. Sending a message to an on-line user opens up a window where each user may type messages that the other user may see, allowing for an electronic “conversation”.
The popularity of IM systems is partially based on the immediacy of IM systems, particularly when compared to e-mail. Unlike e-mail, this immediacy requires both parties in an IM exchange to be on-line at the same time. The immediacy of IM systems allows for interactive, back-and-forth exchanges of information without having to perform multiple steps to read, reply, and send a reply e-mail.
IM systems typically provide a choice of different status configurations indicating a user's current status. These status indications will be seen by other users from their own IM programs. If a user is active and available for instant messaging, their status will indicate “active”. If a user is active on the system and desires not to receive instant messages, they may also select a “do not disturb” status which will tell other users not to transmit instant messages even though the user is on-line. If a user is logged in to the system but will be unable to respond to instant messages, such as when they are in a meeting, they may select an “away” status.
Oftentimes, the desired contact of a user will appear as unavailable, e.g., “do not disturb” and “in a meeting”. In such situations, the user finds he is constantly checking his contact list to determine when the desired contact becomes available, or must simply risk interrupting the contact by sending a message despite “away” or “unavailable” status. Consequently, the user must waste time by having to constantly check status for the desired contact, waste time waiting to be notified that the desired contact has returned to her computer or potentially annoy the desired contact by sending an IM message.